Why Couldn't You Be Selfish
by Tygger3389
Summary: "We're going to be best friends," Iris told him, "It's destiny, we don't have a choice." "I think you were wrong." He remembered, "I think you chose me. We chose each other." Pre-reboot. Two shot. Damian/Iris. Speeddemon. WARNING Character death.
1. Chapter 1

******Pre-reboot, AU Batman/Flash.**

**I own nothing but the idea.**

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><p>Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep… Hehehehe…<p>

_Damian peered over the edge of his book, irritated. He hadn't been worried when he'd been instructed to be on his best behaviour this afternoon, since Grayson and West were visiting to talk to his father about some league business or something along those lines, but he hadn't counted on one thing. Both West and Grayson had children; children that apparently had to accompany them to the manor. Grayson's daughter Mar'i and West's son, Jai, were using Tim's old game cube to play some video game that consisted of driving cars in circles. The other one, West's girl, Iris or whatever, had escaped his line of sight, which worried him only a little since he'd heard her giggle only a second ago._

_His eyes flicked back to the page of his book. He wasn't really reading, but if it looked like he was, people were less likely to disturb his thoughts. He knew his father was frustrated with him; he couldn't understand why Damian didn't want to act like other children. Damian couldn't care less about making friends or playing sports and when he did try these things, he usually ended up hurting someone._

"_Hi!" He jumped, slamming his book closed as the cheerful, girly voice chirped right next to his ear._

_Turning slowly, he glared at the red haired girl, "What?"_

_The girl, who was around his age, didn't look fazed by his scowl, "I'm Iris. You're Damian, right?"_

"_Yes." He ground out shortly._

_Still seemingly unfazed, she plopped down on the bench next to him, "We're going to be best friends."_

_He blinked, startled out of his anger, this was news to him, "What?"_

"_You're a member of the Batfamily," She informed him, "I'm a speedster, we're going to be best friends, it's destiny."_

_He couldn't help looking slightly amused, "Destiny, huh? And what if we're not best friends?"_

_She looked surprised, her big green eyes fluttering, like she hadn't even thought this possible, "I guess… terrible things would happen. The world wouldn't be right. I guess we can start as regular friends, though. It would be a little rash to just jump straight in as best friends."_

_He stared at her for a good long minuet, something about her rattled his cage and he found himself nearly speechless. Finally, picking his words carefully, he managed to offer a comment, "I don't have friends."_

"_Well," She shrugged, "Now you do."_

_He paused again, "Destiny?"_

"_That's right," She nodded, beaming, "We don't have a choice."_

"You lied to me." There was a quiver in Damian's voice, so quiet that it wouldn't have been noticeable to anyone but his closest friends. He was with his closest friend now and though he thought it unlikely, he managed to hope that she could hear him. Iris lay still in the hospital bed, not reacting to his accusing words. Part of him wanted to grab her shoulders and shake her until she woke up, as if the body laying in the bed could suddenly be her again. Her beautiful green eyes would open and she would laugh at him, call him silly names, kiss his forehead gently and promise to never leave him. The other part of him was slightly more rational, only slightly because he kept talking, "You told me we didn't have a choice. That we had to be friends, but it wasn't true."

Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep…

"You chose me." He whispered, taking her small, pale, almond hand in his larger, slightly browner one, "We chose each other."

Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep…

"Why?" His voice was barely audible as he relived the events of the day in his head again and again, reaching up to stroke her cheek, for once, not ashamed about the tears that stained his face, "Why couldn't you be selfish? He was after me, Irey, that sword was for me. Why'd you get in the way?"

Beep, beep, beep…

"I'd do it again. If I had the chance to go back, I'd pick you again every time." He smoothed the hair off her forehead, "You hear me? I wouldn't change a second of our time together. Not a second. So you listen to me, Iris West, I need you to wake up. I need you to be okay, because I love you and I want to have the rest of our lives to figure out what to do with that. I need you with me while I figure things out. Please?"

…

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><p><strong>In case this wasn't clear, while out on a mission, Damian was attacked and Iris jumped in front of him to save him and was stabbed. While sitting with her in the hospital, Damian remembers the day they met, and confesses that he thinks she was wrong about them being destiny, that he thinks they chose each other. Then she dies. I'm sorry. ~ Tygger<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

...

He wanted it to stop, the whining, that terrible sound that had taken her from him. His Iris, his beautiful best friend. She'd been in love with him, he knew, and him with her, but she was too shy to say it and he was too proud... proud? Was he? Or was he scared? Scared of this. Of losing her. He sqeased her hand and lay his forehead on the bed by her hip, his eyes shut tight as if he were wishing on evening stars, "Wake up. Please, please, please, just wake up, Iris."

Beep, beep, beep, beep...

A hand reached out and stroked his hair. Gentle and small, but strong. At first he thought he was imagining it, after all, he was alone. But then he heard it, an angel speaking to him, "Damian?"

He bolted up, his tear-redened blue eyes meeting her emerald green ones in shock, "Iris?"

She sat up, peering around in confusion, "Where am I?"

"The hospital," He soothed, moving to sit beside her on the bed and stroking her soft red hair, "You saved me, remember? You got hurt, but you're okay now. It's a miracle, you're a miracle..."

"I am not," she scolded gently, "More like a random cosmic accident..."

She was cut off by his lips crashing into hers. Surprised at first, she quickly melted into the kiss, her hands finding his dark hair. He wanted to take hours memorizing her. How she felt, how she tasted, her smell. Strawberries and roses, he could remember the first time he noticed it, laying in the garden behind her house, just after saving her from breaking her neck as she tried to jump from the roof to the blow up pool on the lawn. That was right before he accused her of being insane for the first time. Reluctantly, he broke off the kiss, burrying his face in her neck.

"Damain?" She leaned her cheek against the top of his head, stroking the hair at the base of his neck, "What was that all about?"

"I lost you," He whispered, his voice horce, leaning into her every touch, "I lost you to this... this damn life of ours. I don't want it anymore, to be a hero, not if it's going to take you away. I love you too much."

"Shhhh," She soothed, "I love you too. It's going to be okay. I'm okay, I promise. that's what you want, right? For me to be okay?"

"I want everything," He insisted, tears stinging his eyes as he rambled on, "I want you and the cute little wedding in your partent's back yard and the house with the little white fence and two kids who'll be play in the yard with the dog when I come home from work. I'll kiss you when I walk in the door and we'll have dinner and watch movies and do nice family stuff until the kids go to bed and then we'll go to our room and cuddle until you fall asleep and even then I'll never ever let you go..."

"Damian," Iris sounded surprised, "Calm down. We... we can have all that if that's what you want."

"You'll do it?" He looked hopeful, "You'll stay with me?"

"Of course I'll stay with you," She smiled softy, "I'll always be with you. I promise."

"Always..."

"Mr. Wayne?" Damian jumped awake as the nurse shook his shoulder, his face dazed as that terrible whine filled his ears again, "Mr. Wayne, I'm sorry, but she's gone. You need to let her go now."

"No..." Damian glanced down at the red head's small body, appearing only asleep in the bed. She really was gone.

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><p><strong>Sorry, I did it again. ~ Tygger<strong>


End file.
